Savannah metro area unemployment rate up slightly in April compared to year ago

Another bit of dreary news for the Savannah economy, although the Georgia Department of Labor is once again trying to put a positive spin on it.

The Savannah metro area’s unemployment rate “decreased” from 8.6% in March to 8.5% in April, according to the DOL press release, but — as I keep noting — those numbers are not seasonally adjusted. Employment pretty much always improves in the spring and then nosedives in June; that’s just the seasonal pattern.

The best measure of the unemployment rage is to look at year over year comparisons. As the press release notes: “The jobless rate in the metro Savannah area in April a year ago was 8.3 percent.”

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ABOUT SAVANNAH UNPLUGGEDIn my columns in the Savannah Morning News, I write about the local economy and culture. But those columns don't exist in a vacuum: I follow a wide variety of national news and experience Savannah much more deeply than I can possibly capture in three columns a week. So here on Savannah Unplugged, you'll find everything from nationwide economic trends to nightclub photos. I also contribute to the political blog Peach Pundit and the music blog hissing lawns.